As of: March 16, 2024, 2:11 a.m
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A United Airlines passenger plane lost a cover on its fuselage in flight on Friday.
© Andy Atkinson/dpa
The aircraft manufacturer continues to be in the negative headlines: Once again a Boeing loses a part in flight.
This time the cause may lie somewhere else.
Chicago – A United Airlines passenger plane lost a cover on its fuselage in flight on Friday.
The airline said the damage to the Boeing 737-800 was only discovered on the ground after it landed without any problems in the city of Medford, Oregon.
The local newspaper “Rogue Valley Times”
had previously
published an eyewitness photo showing exposed mechanics.
Boeing can't avoid negative headlines
According to United, the plane took off from San Francisco with 139 passengers and six crew members.
Judging by the onboard number from another eyewitness photo, the aircraft was first put into operation in 1998.
Boeing is currently increasingly in the spotlight after a virtually new 737-9 Max aircraft lost a part of its fuselage while climbing after take-off at the beginning of January.
According to initial investigations, the US accident investigation authority NTSB assumes that four fastening bolts were missing from the torn out fuselage fragment.
Material fatigue in the old aircraft could have been the reason for the damage
However, it's not just the fuselage of Boeing aircraft that causes problems.
Earlier this year, a Boeing plane lost a window during a flight in the United States.
On a flight between Australia and New Zealand, a Boeing plane recently ran into severe turbulence, injuring around 50 people, some seriously.
A movement in the pilot's seat is said to have been to blame for the Boeing 787 incident at the beginning of March.
The assumption was that this could have caused the aircraft to tilt downwards.
Boeing recommended that airlines check the motorized cockpit seats the next time their 787s are serviced.
However, for a 25-year-old aircraft like United's, maintenance or material fatigue are likely to play a larger role than production.
United announced an investigation into how the incident occurred.
(dpa)